The present invention is directed to warehousing apparatus for moving goods onto and off of storage shelves and, more particularly, it is directed to a movably supported vibrator positionable into contact with a storage shelf for vibrating the shelf and causing items of goods to move along the shelf.
A variety of devices are known for moving goods along a storage shelf. In one such device the goods are shelved on storage belts and when the belts are not in motion they serve as storage space for the goods. Usually each conveyor belt has its own drive which is controlled automatically. By driving the conveyor belt goods can be loaded onto or unloaded from the belt. While such an arrangement is effective, the structure of the conveyor belt and its associated drive make the device quite expensive. Further, the conveyor belts and their drives require a relatively large amount of space and are very heavy.
Another storage device operates on the principle of automatic vending machines. The weight of the individual items of goods causes them to move along guideways. At the lower or unloading end of such guideways, a barrier is positioned to control the unloading operation. The barrier can be automatically operated from a remote location. However, such devices are not suitable for goods of different sizes stored in the same guideway. Furthermore, such devices are usable only with goods which can be stacked and can withstand a certain amount of pressure.
Still another type of storage shelves involves the use of rolls over which the goods slide by gravity. Such devices have the disadvantage that the ability of the goods to move over the rolls depends on the weight of the goods and the amount loaded onto the rolls. Because of the variation in speed with which different types of goods move over the rolls, automatic counting of individual items of the goods is made more difficult. If the surface of the goods contacting the rolls is not even, difficulty is experienced in moving the goods over the rolls. The initial cost and upkeep on such storage facilities is expensive.